My thoughts on the Phillies season.

Results tagged ‘ Austin Kearns ’

As rookie Jonathan Pettibone win his second straight start, the Phils win their second straight game from the Marlins, 4-1.

The Phils took the lead in the bottom of the second as Ryan Howard hits a lead-off solo blast to right field, his fifth home run of the season, and his second home run in as many games, giving the Phils a 1-0 lead. The Phils added to their lead four batters later as, with a runner on second, and with two men out, Ben Revere hits an RBI single, knocking in Carlos Ruiz, who had earlier singled, then stole second base. The Phils increased their lead in the bottom of the third as Chase Utley hits a lead-off home run, his sixth home run of the season, giving the Phils a 3-0 lead. The Marlins cut the Phils’ lead in the top of the fourth as Donovan Solano hits a lead-off home run, his first home run of the year, making it a 3-1 Phils’ lead. The Phils then got the run back in their half of the fourth as Dom Brown hits a lead-off home run, his fifth home run of the year, and his second hime run in as many nights, giving the Phils a 4-1 lead. The Marlins tried to get back into the game in the top of the seventh as they loaded up the bases, via a single by Marcell Ozuna, and walks to Rob Brantley and Adeiny Hechavarria, and with one man out, before Antonio Bastardo ended the threat by first striking out pinch-hitter Austin Kearns, swinging, for the inning’s second out, and then striking out pinch-hitter Matt Diaz, looking, for the inning’s final out. After Mike Adams put down a two-on, one-out threat in the eighth, Jonathan Papelbon came in and recorded his fifth save of the season as he pitched a 1-2-3 ninth.

Jonathan Pettibone (2-0, 3.24) got the win as he pitched six and one-third innings, giving up a run on five hits, as he struck out three. Antonio Bastardo collected his fourth hold of the year as he pitched two-thirds of an inning, giving up two walks, while striking out two. Mike Adams received his third hold of the season as he threw a scoreless inning, giving up a hit and a walk, while striking out a batter. Jonathan Papelbon recorded his fifth save of the season as he threw a 1-2-3 inning, striking out a batter. Ricky Nolasco (2-3, 4.14) took the lost as he threw six innings, giving up four runs on eight hits and a walk, while striking out four. Ryan Webb threw two scoreless inning, walking a batter, while striking out two.

The Phils had eight hits in the game, with Ryan Howard (Double, Home Run, RBI) leading the team with two hits. Jimmy Rollins (Single), Chase Utley (Home Run, RBI), Delmon Young (Single), Dom Brown (Home Run, RBI), Carlos Ruiz (Single) and Ben Revere (Single, RBI) had the other six Phils’ hits. The Phils also had two walks (Howard, Jonathan Pettibone) and a stolen base (Ruiz (1)) in the game.

The Phils (14-16, 3rd) continue their series with the Marlins (8-22, 5th) with a night game tonight. The game is to be played at Citizens Bank Park and is to start at 7:05 pm EDT. The Phils will send to the mound Cole Hamels (1-3, 4.78) who is coming off a win against the Mets on April 28, as he went six innings, giving up a run on two hits and six walks, while striking out eight, in the Phils’ 5-1 win. He will be going for his second straight win. The Marlins will counter with Jose Fernandez (0-2, 4.50) as he is coming off a no-decision against the Mets on April 29, as he pitched just four innings, giving up two runs on three hits and three walks, while striking out four, in the Marlins’ 4-3 win. He is still looking for his first win of 2013. The Phils hope to make it three straight wins against the fish.

The Phils overcomes an early Marlins’ lead to end up beating the fish, 9-5.

The Marlins took a quick 2-0 lead in the first as, with the bases loaded, via singles by Bryan Petersen and Donovan Solano, with Petersen stopping at second base, and a walk to Jose Reyes, and with nobody out, Giancarlo Stanton hits a two-run single, knocking in Petersen and Solano, while sending Reyes up to second base. Three batters later, the Marlins added to their lead as, with runners still on first and second, and now with two men out, Rob Brantly hits an RBI single, knocking in Reyes, while sending Stanton over to third base. The Phils got two of the runs back in the second as, with runners on the corners, and with two men out, Pete Orr hits a two-run double, knocking in Dom Brown, who was safe at first on a force out, 3-6, as Carlos Ruiz, who had started the inning off with a single, is wiped out at second base for the inning’s first out, and then moved up to third base on Nate Schierholtz’s single, and Schierholtz, who had just singled, making it a 3-2 Marlins’ lead. The Marlins added to their lead in the third as Stanton hits a lead-off home run, his thirty-fifth home run of the year, giving the Marlins a 4-2 lead. The Phils tied the game up at four-all in the fifth as, with runners on second and third, and with one man out, Chase Utley hits a two-run single, knocking in Roy Halladay, who had reached first base on an infield single near home plate, then moved up to second base on Jimmy Rollins’ single, then went to third base on Juan Pierre’s sacrifice bunt, 1-3, and Rollins, who had earlier singled, then stopped at second base on Pierre’s sac bunt. The Phils then took the lead two batters later, after Utley had moved up to second base on Ruiz’s ground out, 4-3, as Brown hits an RBI triple, knocking in Utley, giving the Phils a 5-4 lead. The Phils increased their lead in the seventh as, with two men on, and with one man out, Ruiz hits a two-run double, knocking in Rollins, who had earlier singled, then moved up to second base on Pierre’s second sac bunt of the night, 2-3, and Utley, who had just walked, giving the Phils a 7-4 lead. The Phils added to their lead in the eighth as, with two men on, and with two men out, Utley hits an RBI single, knocking in Rollins, who had earlier walked, then moved up to second base on Pierre’s walk, giving the Phils an 8-4 lead, while sending Pierre, who had just walked, up to second base. The Marlins got a run back in their half of the first as, with the bases loaded, via a strikeout-wildpitch that allowed Stanton to reach first base, then moved up to second base on Ruiz’s throwing error, a walk to Carlos Lee, then both runners moving up a base on Antonio Bastardo’s wild pitch, and a walk to Greg Dobbs, and with one man out, Gil Velazquez hits an RBI single, knocking in Stanton, making it an 8-5 Phils’ lead, while moving up a base both Lee and Dobbs, leaving the bases loaded. But, the Phils then gets out of the inning as pinch hitter Austin Kearns strikes out, swinging, for the inning’s second out, but the ball gets away from Ruiz, and Lee attempts to score from third, but Ruiz gets to the ball, and throws to the plate, which was covered by Bastardo, who then tagged out Lee for the inning’s final out, for a strikeout-doubleplay. The Phils got that run back in the ninth as, with a man on third, and with two men out, Kevin Frandsen hits an RBI single, knocking in Darin Ruf, who had earlier doubled, giving the Phils a 9-6 lead. That would end up being the final score as Jonathan Papelbon pitched a scoreless inning.

Roy Halladay (11-8, 4.49) got the win as he pitched five innings, giving up four runs on six hits and three walks, while he struck out seven. Jeremy Horst collected his fifth hold of the season as he pitched one and one-third scoreless innings, striking out a batter. Justin De Fratus collected his fourth hold of the year as he threw two-thirds of an inning, getting out both men that he would face. Phillippe Aumont pitched to two batters, getting neither officially out, as he gave up a run on a walk, while striking out one, who would get on base on a wild pitch. Antonio Bastardo received his twenty-fifth hold of the season as he pitched an inning, giving up a hit and a walk, while striking out one. Jonathan Papelbon pitched a scoreless inning, giving up three hits, while striking out two. Ricky Nolasco (12-13, 4.48) took the lost as he pitched five innings as well, giving up five runs on nine hits, while striking out four. Dan Jennings pitched a 1-2-3 inning. Mike Dunn pitched a third of an inning, giving up two runs on a hit and a walk. Tom Koehler pitched two-thirds of an inning, giving up a hit and a walk, striking out a batter. A.J. Ramos pitched two-thirds of an inning, giving up a run on two hits and two walks, while striking out a batter. Chad Gaudin pitched a third of an inning, striking out the only batter that he would face. Chris Hatcher pitched an inning, giving up a run on two hits.

The Phils had fifteen hits in the game, with Jimmy Rollins leading the ballclub with three hits, all singles, followed by Chase Utley (Singles, 3 RBIs), Carlos Ruiz (Single, Double, 2 RBIs), Nate Schierholtz (Singles) and Kevin Frandsen (Singles, RBI) all with two hits apiece. Dom Brown (Single, RBI), Darin Ruf (Double), Pete Orr (Double, 2 RBIs) and Roy Halladay (Single) had the other four Phils’ hits. The Phils also had four walks and three stolen bases (Pierre (2, 36 & 37), Utley (11)) in the ballgame.

The Phils (79-79, 3rd) will conclude their series with the Marlins (67-91, 5th) with a game now in progress.

A bullpen meltdown in the eighth inning ends the Phils chances to sweep the fish before they lose to the Marlins, 9-2.

The Marlins took the lead in the fourth as, with runners on the corners, and with nobody out, Greg Dobbs hits an RBI single, knocking in Carlos Lee, who had started the inning off with a walk, then stopped at third base on Giancarlo Stanton’s double, giving the Marlins a 1-0 lead, while sending Stanton, who had just doubled, up to third base. The Marlins then made it a 2-0 lead as Donovan Solano hits a sacrifice fly, scoring Stanton. The Phils got a run back in the fifth as Ty Wigginton hits a lead-off home run, his tenth home run of the season, cutting the Marlins’ lead down to 2-1. The Phils tied the game up at two-all in the sixth as, with two men on, and with two men out, Wigginton hits an RBI single, knocking in Kevin Frandsen, who had earlier singled, then stopped at second base on Chase Utley’s walk, while sending Utley, who had just walked, up to third base. The Marlins retook the lead in their half of the sixth as, with two men out, Dobbs hits a solo home run, his fourth home run of the season, giving the Marlins a 3-2 lead. The Marlins added to their lead in the eighth as, with runners on the corners, and with nobody out, Stanton hits an RBI single, knocking in Jose Reyes, who had started the inning off with a walk, then stopped at third base on Lee’s single, giving the Marlins a 4-2 lead, while sending Lee, who had just singled, up to second base. Four batters later, with the bases loaded, after both Lee and Stanton had moved up a base on Dobbs fly out to center field for the inning’s first out, and an intentional walk to Solano, and with two men out, the Marlins bust the game wide open as Austin Kearns hits a two-run single, knocking in both Lee and Stanton, giving the Marlins a 6-2 lead, while sending Solano up to second base. The Marlins then took an 8-2 lead as Bryan Pattersen hits a two-run double, scoring both Solano and Kearns. The Marlins then made it a 9-2 lead as Gorkys Hernandez hits an RBI single, knocking in Kearns. That would end up being the final score as Ryan Webb pitched a scoreless ninth.

Roy Halladay (6-7, 3.80) took the lost as he went seven innings, giving up three runs on six hits and a walk, while striking out seven. B.J. Rosenberg pitched to three batters, getting none of them out, as he gave up three runs, on two hits and a walk. Raul Valdes pitched a third of an inning, giving up a run on a walk. Michael Schwimer pitched two-thirds of an inning, giving up two runs on three hits, while striking out a batter. Mark Buehrle (10-11, 3.74) got the win as he pitched seven innings, giving up two runs on five hits and a walk, while he struck out three. Mike Dunn collected his fourteenth hold of the season as he pitched a scoreless inning, walking a batter, while striking out one. Ryan Webb pitched a scoreless inning.

The Phils had only five hits in the game, with Ty Wigginton leading the team with two hits, a single and a home run, knocking in both Phils’ runs. Jimmy Rollins, Kevin Frandsen and John Mayberry, Jr. had the other three Phils’ hits, all singles, as the offense is once again shut down by Buehrle.

The Phils (54-63, 4th East) will start a four-game series with the Brewers (52-64, 4th Central) starting with a night game tonight. The game will be played at Miller Park and is supposed to start at 8:10 pm EDT (7:10 pm CDT). The Phils will send to the mound Cliff Lee (2-7, 3.85), who is coming off a lost to the Cardinals on August 11, as he pitched seven innings, giving up four runs on ten hits, while he struck out six, in the Phils’ 4-1 lost. He will be trying for his third win of the season. The Brewers will counter with Marco Estrado (0-5, 4.36), who is coming off a no-decision against the Astros on August 11, as he went four innings, giving up four runs on seven hits, while striking out three, in the Brewers’ 6-5 extra-innings lost. He will be trying to get his first win of the year. The Phils will be trying to start off the series with a win.

Cole Hamels throws his second straight shutout against an NL Eastern Division opponent as the Phils beat the Marlins, 4-0.

The Phils took the lead in the third as, with runners on the corners, and with one man out, Chase Utley hits an RBI double, knocking in Jimmy Rollins, who had earlier singled, then stopped at third base on Juan Pierre’s single, giving the Phils a 1-0 lead, while sending Pierre, who had just singled, on to third base. The Phils then took a 2-0 lead three batters later, after loading up the bases on Ryan Howard’s walk, sending Utley to second base, and with two men out, John Mayberry, Jr. reached base on a fielding error by Greg Dobbs, which allowed Pierre to score, as Utley reached third base, and Howard stopped at second base. The Phils increased their lead in the third as, with a man on first, and with two men out, Pierre hits an RBI triple, knocking in Rollins, who had earlier reach base on a force out, 4-6, as Cole Hamels, who had earlier singled, was wiped out at second base for the inning’s second out, giving the Phils a 3-0 lead. The Phils made it a 4-0 lead in the seventh as, with the bases loaded, via a walk to Dom Brown, a single by Mayberry, sending Brown up to second base, and a single by Kevin Frandsen, moving both runners up a base, and with one man out, Erik Kratz hits a sacrifice fly, scoring Brown, while sending Mayberry up to third base. That would be more than enough runs support for Hamels as he would throw a complete game shutout, his second shutout in as many starts, as he would get Austin Kearns to ground out, 4-3, for the game’s final out.

Cole Hamels (13-6, 2.91) would get the win as he threw a complete game shutout, giving up seven scattered hits and a walk, while striking out five. Nathan Eovaldi (3-8, 4.28) would get the lost as he went only five innings, giving up three runs, only two of which were earned, on eight hits and three walks, while he struck out two. Carlos Zambrano pitched two innings, giving up a run on two hits and two walks, while striking out a batter. Mike Dunn and Ryan Webb combined for two scoreless innings, giving up two hits (one hit each) between them, while striking out three (Dunn (1), Webb (2)).

The Phils had twelve hits in the game, with Juan Pierre (2 Singles, Triple, RBI) leading the team with three hits, followed by Dom Brown (Singles), John Mayberry, Jr. (Single, Double) and Kevin Frandsen (Singles) with two hits each. Jimmy Rollins (Single), Chase Utley (Double, RBI) and Cole Hamels (Single) had the other three Phils’ hits. The final Phil run came in on an error. The Phils also had five walks in the game.

The Phils (53-62, 4th) continue their series with the Marlins (52-64, 5th) with a night game tonight. The game will be played at Marlins Park and will begin at 7:10 pm EDT. The Phils will send to the mound Kyle Kendrick (4-9, 4.86), who is coming off a no-decision against the Braves on August 8, as he went just three and one-third innings, giving up six runs on seven hits and three walks, while striking out a batter, in the Phils’ 12-6 lost. He will be trying to recover from that pitching fiasco. The Marlins plan to counter with Josh Johnson (7-8, 3.88), who is coming off a lost against the Mets on August 9, as he pitched six innings, giving up three runs on eight hits and two walks, while striking out four, in the Marlins’ 6-1 lost. He will be trying to even up his record. The Phils will be trying to increase their present winning streak to three games.

A bad start by Cole Hamels, the first Phil starter to falter in his first regular season start, combined with a presently non-existent offense, leads to the Phils dropping their home opener to the Marlins, 6-2.

The Marlins took the lead in the first as, with runners on second and third, and with nobody out, Hanley Ramirez hits an RBI ground out, 4-3, scoring Jose Reyes, who had earlier singled, then stopped at second base on Emilio Bonifacio’s single, before stealing third as the lead runner on a double steal, giving the Marlins a 1-0 lead, while sending Bonifacio, who had earlier singled, then was the trailing man on the double steal, on to third base. The Marlins added to their lead in the fourth as, with a runner on second, and with nobody out, Gaby Sanchez hits an RBI single, scoring Ramirez, who had started the inning off with a double, giving the Marlins a 2-0 lead. The Marlins then took a 3-0 lead in the fifth as Omar Infante hits a lead-off home run, his second home run of the season. The Marlins increased their lead in the sixth as, with one man on, and with one man out, G. Sanchez hits an RBI double, knocking in Bonifacio, who had earlier singled, giving the Marlins a 4-0 lead. The Marlins then made it a 5-0 lead in the seventh as Infante hits his second lead-off home run of the ball game, his third home run of the season. The Phils finally got on the scoreboard in their half of the seventh as, with runners on the corners, and with one man out, Freddy Galvis hits a two-run double, collecting his first major league hit, knocking in Shane Victorino, who had earlier singled, stopped at second base on John Mayberry Jr’s single, then went to third base on Carlos Ruiz’s force out, 3-6, forcing out Mayberry at second base for the inning’s first out, and Ruiz, who was safe at first on the force out, making it a 5-2 Marlins’ lead. The Marlins got one of the runs back in the ninth as Austin Kearns hits a lead-off home run, his first home run of the season. That would end up being the final score as Steve Cishek pitched a 1-2-3 ninth, getting Ruiz to strike out, swinging, for the game’s final out.

Cole Hamels (0-1, 5.06) took the lost as he went five and one-third innings, giving up four runs, three of which were earned, on eight hits, while he struck out nine Marlins. Joe Savery pitched one and two-thirds innings in his major league debut, as he gave up a run on a hit. David Herndon pitched a scoreless inning, giving up a hit, while striking out a batter. Jonathan Papelbon pitched an inning, giving up a run on a hit, while he struck out one. Anibal Sanchez (1-0, 2.84) got the win as he went six and one-third innings, giving up two runs on six hits and a walk, while striking out four. Randy Choate recorded his first hold of the year as he pitched two-thirds of an inning, getting out both men that he would face, as he struck out a batter. Edward Mujica collected his second hold of the season as he pitched a 1-2-3 inning, striking out a batter. Steve Cishek pitched a 1-2-3 ninth, striking out two.

The Phils had only six hits in the game, with Jimmy Rollins leading the team with two hits, both singles. Hunter Pence (Single), Shane Victorino (Single), John Mayberry, Jr. (Single) and Freddy Galvis (Double, 2 RBIs), had the Phils’ other four hits. The Phils also had a steal (Rollins) in the game, as the offense continues with its early woes.

Jamie Moyer pitches eight strong innings as he collects career victory no. 266, tying him for 36th place on the all-time wins list with former Indian Hall of Famer Bob Feller and one time Phil Hall of Famer Eppa Rixey, as he leads the Phils to a 2 to 1 win over the Indians.

The Phils took the lead in the first as, with two men on, and with one man out, Ryan Howard hits an RBI single, knocking in Placido Polanco, who had earlier singled, and then moved up to second base on a Chase Utley walk, giving the Phils a 1-0 lead, while sending Utley, who had earlier walked, over to third base. The Phils then made it 2-0 as, with runners now on the corners, and with still only one man out, Jayson Werth hits a sacrifice fly, scoring Utley. The Indians would cut the Phils’ lead in the second as, with two men out, Russell Branyan hits a solo home run, his tenth home run of the season, and the 505th home run given up by Phils’ starter Jamie Moyer in his 24-years career, tying him with the late Hall of Famer Robin Roberts for this dubious distinction, making it a 2-1 Phils’ lead. The game then became a pitchers’ duel between Moyer and Indians’ starter Mitch Talbot. Talbot would give up only two more hits and two more walks to the Phils after the first inning, escaping a jam in the fourth as Shane Victorino hits into a 4-6-3 double play with runners on first and third, and with one man out, as Raul Ibanez, who had just singled, is called out at second for runner’s interference on the play, thus preventing a run from scoring. This call would lead to Charlie Manual being ejected from the game for arguing over the call. Moyer, meantime, would only give up one more hit and one walk after the Branyan home run, as he escapes a two on and two out jam of his own in the sixth by getting Carlos Santana to fly out to left. The Indians then tried to put together a rally in the ninth as they were able to get two men on, Shin-Soo Choo with a single and Santana with a walk, after J.C. Romero had started the inning off by getting out the lead-off man. Brad Lidge is then brought in, and proceeds to record his fifth save of the season in six attempts by first striking out Austin Kearns swinging and then striking out Jhonny Peralta, also swinging, to end the ball game.

Jamie Moyer gets the win as he pitches eight strong innings, giving up only one run on two hits and a walk, while striking out five. His record is now 8-6 with an ERA of 4.43. J.C. Romero records his second hold of the season, as he gives up just one hit and a walk. Brad Lidge picks up his fifth save of the season as he strikes out both men that he would face. Mitch Talbot took the lost as he pitches seven innings, giving up two runs on four hits and three walks, while he strikes out three. His record is now 7-6 with 4.08 ERA. Kerry Wood pitches a 1-2-3 inning.

The Phils had only four hits in the game, with Ryan Howard having two of the four hits, both singles, as he knocks in a run, raising his average to .294. Placido Polanco and Raul Ibanez had the other two Phils’ hits, both singles, while Jayson Werth knocks in the other Phil’s run with a sac fly. The Phils’ offense, once again, went cold, but thanks to Moyer’s strong outing, it was enough to win the game, but it shows that the team is once again not playing the way that everyone expects them to play.

The Phillies (36-32, 3rd NL East) will continue their three-game series with the Indians (26-43, 5th AL Central) with another night game. The game will be played at Citizens Bank Park and will start at 7:05 pm Eastern.The Phils’ starter will be Kyle Kendrick (4-2 4.48), who is coming off a win against the Yankees on June 17, when he pitched seven strong innings, giving up a run on four hits and two walks, in the Phils’ 7-1 win. He will be trying to pitched his second straight good outing while trying to capture his fifth win. The Indians will send to the mound Jake Westbrook (4-4, 4.76), who is coming off a lost against the Mets, also on June 17, as he pitched seven innings, getting tagged for five runs on eleven hits and two walks, while striking out five, in the Indians’ 6-4 lost. He will be trying to keep from being smoked for the second straight start. The Phils will be trying for their second series win in three tries, while hoping that they can actually smoked the Indians, while also hoping that Jimmy Rollins will regain his batting stroke tonight.

Ryan Howard’s two massive home runs, a solo shot and a team record setting grand-slam home run, help leads the Phils to a 9-6 win over the lowly Nationals. The Phils, meanwhile, regain first place from the Mets.

The Nationals took the lead in the second as, with two men on, and one man out, Wil Nieves hits a two run double, knocking in Josh Willingham, who had earlier singled, and had moved up to second on Alberto Gonzalez’s single, and Gonzalez, who had just singled, giving the Nats a 2-0 lead. Two batters later, with Nieves still on second, and now with two men out, Anderson Hernandez hits an RBI single, knocking in Nieves, who beat the throw to the plate, giving the Nats a 3-0 lead, while Hernandez would move up to second on the throw. The Phils would get a run back in their half of the second as Ryan Howard hits a lead-off home run, his thirteenth home run of the year, cutting the Nats’ lead to 3-1. In the third, with a runner on second, and one man out, Jimmy Rollins hits an RBI single, scoring Carlos Ruiz, who had earlier walked, and had moved up to second on Cole Hamels’ sacrifice bunt, making it a 3-2 Nats’ lead. After Rollins stole second base, the Phils loaded the bases on a Shane Victorino walk and a Chase Utley infield single. Ryan Howard then clears them with a 475-ft monster to right for a grand-slam home run, his fourteenth home run of the year, his third grand-salm of the season, and the eighth grand-slam of his career, setting a new franchise record, as he scored Rollins, Victorino and Utley before him, giving the Phils a 6-3 lead. In the fourth, the Nats would get one of the runs back, as, with one man on, and nobody out, Gonzalez hits an RBI triple, knocking in Austin Kearns, who had earlier walked, making it a 6-4 Phils lead. The Phils would get the run back in their half of the inning as, with a runner on second, and one man out, Hamels hits an RBI double, knocking in Ruiz, who had earlier doubled, giving the Phils a 7-4 lead. In the sixth, with a man on, and two men out, pinch hitter Ronnie Belliard hits a pinch hit two-run home run, scoring Kearns, who had earlier singled, had gone to second when Gonzalez was hit by the pitch, and had gone over to third on Nieves’ double play, 5-4-3, wiping out Gonzalez at second, making it 7-6 Phils. The Phils would get those two runs back in their half of the sixth as, with the bases loaded, via a walk to pinch hitter Greg Dobbs, a double by Victorino, which sent Dobbs to third, and a walk to Utley, with two men out, Howard would reach base on a fielding error by second baseman Hernandez, allowing both Dobbs and Victorino to score, and Utley to reach third, as the Phils take a 9-6 lead. That would be the final score as the Phillies’ bullpen shut down the Nats for the final three innings, with Brad Lidge notching his eleventh save of the year as he pitched a scoreless ninth.

Cole Hamels got the victory as he pitched six innings, giving up six runs on eight hits, a walk and a hit batter, while he struck out seven. His record is now 3-2 with a 5.21 ERA. Scott Eyre recorded his ninth hold of the year as he pitched a third of an inning, giving up two hits. Clay Condrey pitched two-thirds of an inning, recording his fourth hold of the season, as he struck out a batter. Ryan Madson recorded his eleventh hold of the year as he pitched a 1-2-3 inning, striking out two. Brad Lidge recorded his eleventh save of the season as he gave up only a hit, while striking out a batter. Shairon Martis took the lost as he pitched only four innings, giving up seven runs on seven hits and two walks, while striking out only one. His record is now 5-1 with a 5.62 ERA. Jason Bergmann pitched a scoreless inning. Mike MacDougal pitched two-thirds of an inning, giving up two runs on a hit and a walk. Ron Villone, Julian Taverez, Kip Wells and Jesus Colome combined for two and a third scoreless innings, giving up two hits (Tavarez (1), Colome (1)), a walk (Villone) and two hit batters (Tavarez (1), Colome (1)), while striking out four (Tavarez (1), Colome (3)) between them.

The Phillies had ten hits, with Jimmy Rollins, Shane Victorino and Ryan Howard leading the way with two hits each, with both of Howard’s hits being home runs. Chase Utley, Jayson Werth, Carlos Ruiz and Cole Hamels had the Phils’ other four hits. Besides Howard’s five RBIs, Hamels and Rollins both knocked in a run. The Phils had six extra-base hits, four doubles and two home runs. The Phils also stole five bases, with Utley, Rollins, Victorino, Ruiz and Werth each stealing a base. The win gives the Phils a series win, as they now go for the series sweep against the Nationals.

The Phillies (27-20, 1st) will conclude their three-games home stand with an afternoon game against the Nationals (13-35, 5th) that will be played at Citizens Bank Park. The game will start at 1:35 pm Eastern. The Phillies will send to the mound Jamie Moyer (3-5, 7.42), who is coming off a lost against the Marlins on May 25, where he went six innings, giving up four runs on seven hits and two walks, while striking out five, in the Phils’ 5-3 lost. He is still looking for his 250th career win, and for his first victory in over a month. The Nationals will counter with John Lannan (2-4, 4.11), who is coming off a lost on May 25 to the Mets, as he pitched five innings, giving up five runs on eight hits and four walks, in the Nats’ 5-2 lost. He will be trying to keep the Phils from sweeping the Nats. The Phillies will be trying to leave home with a winning home stand before going back onto the road, where they have the best record in baseball.

Thanks to a bunch of walks from Nats pitching and some timely hitting, the Phils are finally able to defeat the Nationals in extra-innings, 10-6, hours after meeting the President inside the White House and hours before a day-night doubleheader.

The Phils took the lead in the second, as, with runners on the corners, and two men out, Carlos Ruiz hits an RBI single, scoring Raul Ibanez, who had earlier singled and had gone to second on Pedro Feliz’s single, giving the Phils a 1-0 lead, while sending Feliz, who had earlier singled, on to third. The Nats tied the game up at one-all in the third, as, with a runner on second, and one man out, Ryan Zimmerman hits an RBI single off of Chase Utley’s glove, scoring Nick Johnson, who had earlier walked, and had gone to second on Phils’ starter Joe Blanton’s wild pitch, and beat a surprised Utley throw to the plate, while Zimmerman would move up to second on the throw. Later, with the bases loaded, thanks to walks to Adam Dunn and Austin Kearns, and now with two men out, the Nationals took a 2-1 lead as Anderson Hernandez walked, plating Zimmerman, while moving both Dunn and Kearns up a base, leaving the bases loaded. Wil Neaves then made it a 4-1 Nats lead as he hits a two-run single, scoring both Dunn and Kearnes, while sending Hernandez on to third. The Phils would come back in the sixth, as, with two men on, and two men out, Feliz hits an RBI single, scoring Utley, who had earlier been hit by the pitch, and had gone up to second when Ibanez was also hit by a pitch, making it a 4-2 Nats’ lead, while sending Ibanez, who was also hit by a pitch, to third. Ruiz would make it a 4-3 Nats’ lead, as he hits an RBI single, scoring Ibanez, while sending Feliz up to second. The Phils then took the lead in the seventh, as, with two men on, and one out, Ryan Howard hits a three-run home run, his seventh home run of the year, knocking in Jimmy Rollins, who had earlier walked, stole second, and then moved to third on Shane Victorino’s single, and Victorino, who had just singled. Then in the ninth, the Phils gave the ball to Brad Lidge to close out the game. Sadly, it did not happen, as, with two on, and two men out, Willie Harris hits a two-run double, scoring Zimmerman, who had earlier singled, and had gone on to second on Dunn’s grounder to third, which lead to a force out of Johnson, who had earlier singled, as Feliz touched third base for the inning’s second out, but beating the throw to first, making it a six-all tie. The two teams would be unable to do anything in either the tenth or the eleventh, but the Phils would retake the lead in the twelfth, as, with the bases loaded, via walks to Utley, Howard and Jayson Werth, and one man out, Ibanez hits a two-run single, knocking in Utley and Howard, while moving Werth up to second base, giving the Phils an 8-6 lead. Then, with Feliz batting, Werth and Ibanez performed a double steal, which lead to Werth scoring, making it a 9-6 Phils’ lead, as Nats’ catcher Nieves committed a throwing error to center field while trying to throw out Ibanez at second. Feliz then made it a 10-6 Phils’ lead, as Feliz hits an RBI double, scoring Ibanez. That would end up being the final score, as J.A. Happ would get the win, in spite of having some trouble in the inning.

Joe Blanton received a no-decision as he was only able to pitch five innings, giving up four runs on five hits, six walks and a wild pitch, while striking out five. Chad Durbin followed with a scoreless inning, hitting one batter, while also striking out one. Scott Eyre then recorded his fifth hold, as he pitched two-thirds of an inning. Ryan Madson followed for an inning and a third, recording his sixth hold, striking out one. Brad Lidge recorded his second blown save of the year, as he gave up two runs on two hits and a walk, while striking out one. Clay Condrey then pitched a scoreless inning. J.A. Happ picked up the win as he pitched two scoreless inning, giving up just one hit, one walk and hitting a batter, while striking out three. His record is now 2-0 with a 2.49 ERA. John Lannan also recorded a no-decision, as he went five and two-thirds innings, giving up three runs on six hits, a walk and two hit batters, as he struck out only two. Garrett Mock pitched to only one batter, giving up a hit. Ron Villone recorded his second hold as he pitched a third of an inning, giving up no hits or walks. Jesus Colome pitched to two batters, giving up two runs on one hit and a walk. Joe Beimel blew his second save of the season, giving up a run on three hits and a balk, while striking out one. Julian Tavarez pitched an inning and a third, giving up only one hit and two walks, while striking out a batter. Joel Hanrahan pitched two scoreless innings, giving up only a hit and a walk, while striking out three. Kip Wells took the lost as he pitched an inning, giving up four runs on three hits and four walks, while striking out two. His record is now 0-1 with a 6.06 ERA.

The Phils had sixteen hits in the game, as the offense came awake late. Raul Ibanez and Pedro Feliz lead the team with four hits each, with both me knocking in a pair of runs. Carlos Ruiz followed with three hits, as he also knocked in two runs. Shane Victorino then followed with two hits, breaking out of his slump. Jimmy Rollins, Ryan Howard and Chris Coste got the other three Phils’ hits, with Howard’s hit being a three-run home run, while Coste’s was a pinch hit single. The Phils’ bat seems to wake up after Chad Durbin’s hitting of the Nats’ Nick Johnson in the sixth. If so, hopefully the bats will stay awake beyond their series with Washington.

The Phils (17-16, T-2nd) continue there four-games series in Washington with a day-night doubleheader against the Nationals (11-22, 5th). The first game will be played at Nationals Park with a 1:05 pm Eastern start. The Phils’ starter will be Brett Myers (2-2, 4.81), who is coming off a no-decision against the Braves on May 10, where he went six innings, allowing only one run on five runs and two walks, while striking out three, in the Phils’ 4-2 lost. He will be trying for his third win of the year. The Nats will counter with Scott Olsen (1-3, 7.00), who is coming off a no-decision against the D-backs, on May 10, giving up five runs on ten hits and three walks, while he struck out two, in the Nationals’ 10-8 lost. The Phils will be looking for their second straight win, while improving on their road record.

The Phillies, thanks to grand slams by Ryan Howard and Raul Ibanez, were able to defeat the Washington Nationals, 13-11, as starting pitching once again failed them.

Washington took a quick 1-0 lead, as, with the bases loaded via singles to Adam Dunn and Austin Kearns and a walk to Jesus Flores, and with one man out, Alberto Gonzalez knocked in Dunn with a sacrifice fly, while sending Kearns over to third. The next batter, Nationals’ starter Shairon Martis, helped his own cause by hitting an RBI single, knocking in Kearns, while sending Flores over to second base. The Phillies would quickly tie the game up in their half of the second. With runners on second and third, with no one out, Greg Dobbs hits an RBI single, knocking in Jayson Werth, who had earlier walked, and had move to third on Raul Ibanez’s double, while sending Ibanez, who had earlier doubled, over to third. The score was then tied up at two-all as Lou Marson hits into a 4-6-3 double play, wiping out Dobbs at second, as Ibanez scored. The Nats retook the lead in the third, as, with a runner on first, and no one out, Ryan Zimmerman hits a two-run home run, his third home run of the year, scoring Nick Johnson, who had earlier walked, making it 4-2 Nationals. Two batters later, Elijah Dukes made it a 5-2 Nationals’ lead as he hits a solo home run, his third home run of the season. It became 6-2 Nationals in the fifth, as Zimmerman hits a lead-off solo home run, his fourth home run of the season, and his second of the ball game. But the Phils would come back to tie it up at six all in their half of the fifth, as with the bases loaded via singles by Jimmy Rollins, Shane Victorino and Chase Utley, with one man out, Ryan Howard hits a grand slam home run to center field, his fourth home run of the season and the sixth grand slam home run of his career, scoring Rollins, Victorino and Utley. But, the Nats regained the lead in the sixth, as with the bases loaded via a double to Anderson Hernandez, an intentional walk to Zimmerman, and a walk to Dunn, with two men out, Dukes walked, bringing in Hernandez, making it 7-6 Nationals. The Phils would tie it up at seven-all in the bottom of the sixth, as, with runners on second and third, and no one out, Rollins hits an RBI double on a ball that was misplayed in foul territiory by third baseman Zimmerman that landed fair, scoring Marson, who had earlier walked, and had moved to third base on pinch hitter Pedro Feliz’s double, while Feliz would only end up on third. Sadly, the Phils would be unable to do more damage as Victorino grounded out back to the pitcher, 1-3 for the inning’s first out, and after Utley was hit by the pitch, loading the bases, Howard this time lined out into a double play, 3-unassisted, as Johnson beat Utley back to the bag. The Nationals retook the lead in the top of the eighth, as with a runner on first, and no one out, Johnson hits a two-run home run, his second home run of the year, scoring Hernandez, who had earlier walked, making it 9-7 Nats. Two batters later, with a man on first, and still nobody out, Dunn hits a two-run home run, his fifth home run of the season, scoring Zimmerman, who had earlier walked, to give the Nationals an 11-7 lead. But, the Phils would come right back in their half of the eighth. With runners on second and third, and one out, Victorino hits a sacrifice fly, scoring Feliz, who had earlier singled, and had gone on to third base on Rollins’ second double of the night, making it 11-8 Nationals. Utley then hits an RBI single, scoring Rollins, and cutting the Nats’ lead down to 11-9. Howard and Werth followed with a pair of walks, loading the bases for Ibanez, with still two men out. On the first swing of the bat, Ibanez hits a fast ball into right field for a grand slam home run, his sixth home run of the year, his eighth career grand slam home run, and the Phils’ second grand slam of the night, as they took the lead 13-11, their first lead of the ball game. Ryan Madson then came into the game to record his first save of the season, as he shut down the Nats, giving up only a single.

Joe Blanton received a no-decision as he lasted only four and a thirds innings, giving up six runs on eight hits and three walks, while striking out three. Jack Taschner pitched an inning and a third, giving up a run on on one hit and two walks. Clay Condrey pitched one and one-thirds scoreless innings, giving up a walk, as he struck out two batters. Scott Eyre faced only four batters, giving up four runs on two hits, both home runs, and three walks. J.A. Happ picked up the win as he pitched an inning, giving up no runs, while giving up only a walk. His record is now 1-0 with a 4.38 ERA. Ryan Madson recorded his first save of the year as he pitched a scoreless ninth, giving up just one hit, as he struck out two. Shairon Martis also received a no decision, as he went five innings, giving up seven runs on eight hits and four walks, while striking out three. Julian Tavarez recorded his first blown save of the year, as he allowed a run to score, while pitching one-thirds of an inning, giving up two hits. Mike Hinckley pitched two-thirds of an inning, giving up no runs. Kip Wells pitched a scoreless inning, striking out two. Garrett Mock pitched two-thirds of an inning, giving up two runs on three hits, while striking out a batter. Joel Hanrahan took the lost as he blew the save for the third time this year, as he gave up three runs on one hit and two walks, as he struck out a batter in a third of an inning. His record is now 0-1 with a 8.64 ERA.

The Phillies had fourteen hits in the game, with both Jimmy Rollins and Raul Ibanez leading the way with three hits apiece. Rollins had a single and two doubles, knocking in a run, while scoring two, as he raised his average up to .192, as he may be showing signs of coming out of his slump. Ibanez had a single, a double and a grand slam home run, the eighth one in his career, as he knocked in four runs, while scoring twice, raising his average to .342. Shane Victorino, Chase Utley and Pedro Feliz each had two hits, with both Victorino and Feliz recording a double. Ryan Howard and Greg Dobbs recorded the other two hits, with Howard’s hit being a grand slam home run, his sixth career grand slam, leaving him just one short of the Phillies’ record of seven career grand slams, set by Mike Schmidt. The two grand slams in one game was last done by the Phils on September 9, 2003, when Tomas Perez and Jason Michaels hit grand slams against the Braves. Besides Rollins’ RBI, and the four RBIs posted by both Howard and Ibanez, Victorino, Utley, and Dobbs would record the other three. The Phillies’ pitching staff, after giving up none on Sunday, gave up five home runs last night, three by Blanton, and two by Eyre, which leaves Ryan Madson as the only Phils’ pitcher who has so far not given up a gopher ball. Madson’s stint in the ninth inning occurred because Brad Lidge is presently listed as day-to-day, thanks to inflammation of his right knee. Hopefully this will be a temporary situation as the knee will be checked on today. With the victory, the Phils have now won four games in a row, and are just half a game behind the slumping Marlins, who had lost their seventh straight game to the New York Mets.

The Phillies (10-8, 2nd) will continue their three-games series with the Nationals (4-14, 5th). The game will be played tonight at Citizens Bank Park. Game time is 7:05 pm Eastern. The Phillies will send to the mound their ace Cole Hamels (0-2, 9.69), who is still looking for his first win, as he came off a lost against the Brewers on April 23, where he pitched only three and a thirds innings, after being taken out of the game after being hit by a line drive off his left shoulder off the bat of Prince Fielder. He had at that point given up two runs on four hits and no walks, while striking out six, looking like he was getting back his old form, in the Phils’ 6-1 lost. He will be going for his first win while really lowering his ERA. His opponent will be John Lannan (0-2, 4.43), who is also looking for his first win, as he comes off his second straight no-decision, this time against the Braves on April 22, as he went seven innings, giving up no runs on five hits and a walk, while striking out four, in the Nationals’ 1-0 lost. He will try to record his first win. The Phillies will try to make it five wins in a row, while hoping that they’ll be ending up in first place for the first time this season.

In their final Grapefruit League game, the Phillies lose a wild shoot out with the Washington Nationals, 12-10.

Jamie Moyer started the game for the Phils and, in four innings of work, got torched by the Nats for nine runs on eleven hits, including two home runs to Ryan Zimmerman, a solo shot in the third and two-run home run in the fourth, and a two-run home run to Austin Kearns, also in the fourth inning, and two walks while striking out three. Not a typical Moyer game, but hopefully he now has it out of his system before he goes on to face the Atlanta Braves this upcoming Tuesday night at Citizens Bank Park. Clay Condrey followed for two scoreless innings, giving up only a hit and a walk as he struck out one. Chad Durbin then pitched an inning, giving up a run on two hits while striking out one. Jack Taschner took the lost as he pitched an inning, giving up two runs on two hits, a pair of solo home runs to Cristian Guzman and Alex Cintron, and two walks as he struck out one batter. Gary Majewski ended the game for the Phillies, pitching a scoreless inning, giving up a hit. Taschner spring training record with the Phils is now 0-1 with a 6.75 ERA.

Among the batters, the Phils collected twelve hits. Pedro Feliz led the team with four hits, including a double and a solo home run in the second, as he knocked in three runs while scoring two. Ryan Howard and Matt Stairs both followed him with two hits apiece, with each man hitting a home run, with Howard’s being a two-run shot in the first, his tenth home run of the spring, while Stairs hit a three-run home run in the sixth. Shane Victorino, Raul Ibanez, Eric Bruntlett and Carlos Ruiz had the other four Phillies’ hits, with Ruiz knocking in a run. Greg Dobbs had the Phils’ final RBI.

After the game, the Phillies took a chartered plane back home to Philadelphia, where they will play two spring training games at Citizens Bank Park against the 2008 American League Champions Tampa Bay Rays. The first of the two games is to be played tonight at 7:05 pm.

In other sports new, as the Villanova Wildcats prepare to meet the North Carolina Tar Heels in Detroit, Michigan, to get into the NCAA Championship Game, one of my three alma maters, the Penn State Nittany Lions Basketball Team yesterday defeated the Baylor Bears, 69-63, at Madison Square Garden in New York City, to win the 2009 NIT Tournament. To say that I’m right now a very happy puma (not lion as the Nittany Lion is actually a Mountain Lion or Puma) is an understatement.

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